---
title: "What Is Ballast? Electrical Glossary | Daniel Electric"
description: "A ballast is a device that starts a fluorescent or HID lamp and limits the current flowing through it."
url: https://danielelectric.multisites.ai/glossary/ballast
publisher: Daniel Electric
phone: +1-817-481-8606
quote: https://danielelectric.multisites.ai/contact
---

Lighting

# Ballast

A ballast is a device that starts a fluorescent or HID lamp and limits the current flowing through it.

Gas discharge lamps cannot run directly on line power. A ballast gives them a starting voltage and then regulates the current. Magnetic ballasts are older and electronic ballasts are newer. The ballast uses power too: in one Department of Energy example, a 250 watt metal halide lamp draws 288 watts together with the ballast.

[LED](https://danielelectric.multisites.ai/glossary/led) lamps use a [driver](https://danielelectric.multisites.ai/glossary/led-driver) instead. When a fixture is retrofitted, a ballast may be bypassed or replaced, which is wiring work for a licensed electrician. See [HID lighting](https://danielelectric.multisites.ai/glossary/hid-lighting) and [parking lot lighting repair](https://danielelectric.multisites.ai/parking-lot-lighting-repair).

[Daniel Electric can helpParking lot lighting repair](https://danielelectric.multisites.ai/parking-lot-lighting-repair)

## Related terms

-   [LED driver](https://danielelectric.multisites.ai/glossary/led-driver)
-   [HID lighting](https://danielelectric.multisites.ai/glossary/hid-lighting)
-   [Retrofit](https://danielelectric.multisites.ai/glossary/retrofit)
-   [LED](https://danielelectric.multisites.ai/glossary/led)

## Sources

1.  [U.S. Department of Energy FEMP: Guide to FEMP-Designated Parking Lot Lighting](https://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2014/02/f7/parking_lots_guide.pdf)
2.  [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory: Exterior Lighting Scoping Study](https://www.pnnl.gov/main/publications/external/technical_reports/pnnl-20579.pdf)

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## Need an electrician in Southlake?

Call and tell us what is going on. A photo of the panel label or the problem helps us come prepared. Quotes on new installations are free.

[Call (817) 481-8606](tel:+1-817-481-8606)[Get a quote](https://danielelectric.multisites.ai/contact)

![A Daniel Electric bucket lift raised to a parking lot light pole](https://danielelectric.multisites.ai/_astro/bucket-at-light-pole.BSVZ9eST_1Dp6XR.webp)